Wetland Communities - Freshwater Marshes

View of the Everglades, the groundcover in this view is primarily Eleocharis cellulosa with sawgrass and tree islands (primarily composed of subtropical species).

Freshwater marshes - are wetlands without canopies that are generally dominated by herbacous emergent vegetation. In south Florida the land is flat and freshwater marshes can become very large and broad. The Everglades is the largest freshwater marsh in Florida. There is no canopy and in the groundcover, herbaceous, perennial plants dominate the landscape. There is considerable variation as to the dominance of a particular species. In the everglades, sawgrass and spikerush tends to dominate, while in the Big Cypress area various grasses tend to dominate. See illustrated plant ID cards for common plants.

Common plants in south Florida freshwater marshes.

Groundcover

Botanical name	Common name	DEP status
Aletris lutea	yellow colicroot	FAC
Bacopa caroliniana	blue waterhyssop	OBL
Bacopa monnieri	herb of grace	OBL
Buchnera americana	American bluehearts	UPL
Cladium jamaicense	sawgrass	OBL
Crinum americanum	southern swamp-lily	OBL
Dichromena latifolia	sandswamp whitetop	OBL
Eleocharis cellulosa	Gulf Coast spikerush	OBL
Hymenocallis palmeri	alligatorlily	OBL
Hyptis alata	musky mint	FACW
Juncus megacephalus	bighead rush	OBL
Justicia angusta	pineland waterwillow	OBL
Kosteletzkya virginica	seashore mallow	OBL
Leersia hexandra	southern cutgrass	OBL
Ludwigia sp.	ludwigia; water-primrose
Pontederia cordata	pickerelweed	OBL
Proserpinaca sp.	mermaid-weed	OBL
Rhynchospora inundata	horned beakrush	OBL
Sabatia stellaris	rose of Plymouth	FACW
Sacciolepis striata	American cupscale	OBL
Sagittaria lancifolia	arrowhead	OBL
Schizachyrium scoparium	little bluestem	FAC
Spartina patens	saltmeadow cordgrass	FACW
Thalia geniculata	thalia; fire flag	OBL
Typha sp.	cattail	OBL
Xyris jupicai	Richard's yellow-eyed-grass	FACW